Theme: Here you can see the ironworker's name against the background of the rugged Alberta / Northwest Territory Mountain Range as well as the crossed Spud Wrenches, which are steel erecting tools frequently used by ironworkers.
Custom Hammered / Chased Aluminum Hard Hat Commission Ironworker/Alberta Canada subject matter/theme.
Private Commission: Chased / Hammered Aluminum Hard Hat for an Ironworker, Local 720, Alberta, Canada. These hammered or sometimes engraved hard hats were popular in the 70s with the oil field workers. I have noticed there are many of them coming up for sale on Ebay. I was fortunate enough to have gotten a commission to create one of these hats for a customer's father. Now that this is completed, I hope to get one or two more down the road!
Completed 12/22/2011
Location: Edmonton, Alberta CANADA
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get the best photos of this piece due to time constraints on getting it to the client before Christmas.
Theme: Rugged Alberta Mountain Range that continues all the way around the hat.
Theme: Alberta's Provice Flower is the wild rose. On the license plates, the slogan is "Wild Rose Country." There are the wild roses on this side of the hat with the thorny vines that continue across the hat. I used a "dirty" font style for the words and didn't want to do more than a couple of flowers so the hat would still be masculine. Again, you can see the mountain range theme around on this side.
The polar bear paw prints are from the population of polar bears in Alberta and also because the customer's father works at the Diavik Diamond Mine. There is a small polar bear that is engraved on every diamond that comes out of the Diavik mine.
Theme: A better view of the wild rose/thorn theme, polar bear paw prints and mountain theme.
Theme: On the other side of the hat, I put a welder. You can also see more of the thorny vines and polar bear paw prints.
Theme: On the back of the hat, there is the Canadian Maple Leaf with an overlay of what is an arial view of the Diavik Diamond Mine, which is an open mine. There is also the polar bear overlay, which as mentioned above, represents the polar bear that is engraved on each diamond that comes out of the Diavik Mine. And more of the mountain range.
Theme: The ironworker's Union Slogan and Union Number. There is a construction crane in the background and the "I Walk The Iron" slogan overlaying an "I" Beam. You can also see Caribou antlers on either side of "Diavik." I was told that Mr. Aitkens is a hunter and sometimes hunts Caribou so I was able to fit this last little detail on the back of the hat.
